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Tyrese Haliburton embraced his role as the heel twice last year at MSG, both when the Pacers knocked out the Knicks in seven games in the second round of the playoffs and over the summer in a clash with Jalen Brunson at a WWE event.
Haliburton’s level of hatred from the Garden crowd doesn’t yet match the wrath the New York fans felt for Indiana predecessor Reggie Miller back in the ’90s, but it’s getting closer with the Pacers providing some heartbreak for the Knicks in the playoffs for the second straight year beginning with Wednesday night furious comeback win in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals.
The two-time All-Star heard a few chants of “overrated” from the New York crowd, but he nailed the game-tying shot with his foot on the 3-point arc at the regulation buzzer before the Pacers pulled out a 138-135 overtime victory.
He even directed a Miller-esque choke sign at the Garden crowd when he thought he’d won the game before a replay review determined his foot was on the line.
Haliburton added two more points in OT to finish with 31 points — 12 fewer than Brunson’s 43 — while also recording 11 assists in Game 1.
“For sure, it’s a lot of fun, man. I think last year the series was a lot of fun, back and forth, it felt like nobody could win two in a row until we were able to do it [in Games 6 & 7],” Haliburton said before the series started.
“Going into the series, I think that [the MSG fans] didnt like the [Pacers] organization, but I don’t think there were certain guys that their fans didn’t like.
“But now they don’t really like us too much. So it’s all fun with it, man., and like I said, excited to add more chapters to this storied rivalry and just continue to be a part of it.”
Haliburton also joked that “maybe it’s a good thing that my dad won’t be able to go,” after his father, John Haliburton, was banned by the Pacers from attending games for confronting Giannis Antetokounmpo on the court after the Indiana eliminated the Bucks in Game 5 of the first round.
The two-time All-Star point guard averaged 21.3 points and 7.0 assists in the second-round series against the Knicks last season.
The two guards are close after being teammates on Team USA at the FIBA World Cup in 2023, although only Haliburton was named to the U.S. Olympic team last summer.
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They also both participated in the WWE event at the Garden last June, with Brunson chasing Haliburton out of the ring with a folding chair. Haliburton repsonded, “I’ll be back” and “you don’t want to see me again.”
Now, both Haliburton and Brunson are looking to help their respective teams end lengthy droughts without reaching the NBA Finals
Haluburton only managed four points in the first quarter, but the Pacers nailed their first eight FG attempts and 10 of 11. He scored seven straight Indiana points at one point of the second, and 10 overall in the quarter, but the Knicks led 69-62 at the half.
“I think he’s an offense unto himself,” Tom Thibodeau said before the game. “When he gets into space, that’s when he’s problematic. So we’ve got to make sure he’s seeing bodies.”
Bridges got a piece of a Haliburton 3-point attempt early in the third and the Pacers’ scoring leader later got razzed by the fans for chucking up an airball, but he netted nine in the quarter for a 90-87 Indiana hole entering the fourth.
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